This is a follow up to my last post. The image below should be viewable to anybody.
https://docs.google.com/file/d/0BwRwaM7IeSI5NmJ4cFJkS21ZZlE/edit?usp=sharing This obviously resembles the barrels used in Kiwi Sink to haul out the fill that the diggers have dug up. What you see here is a steel drum that holds 9 gallons. On the bottom, I added a steel plate, and along the insides are a steel strap going up from that plate to each chain connection. The drum just holds in the dirt. The weight of the rocks are on the plate. The steel straps are bolted to the drum only, and the bolt is welded shut. The spreader bar above the barrel allows a large rock to protrude above the lip of the barrel. Unfortunately, that didn't get welded to the right chain-link, so I will have to fix that later. At the top, is a 5/8" dia. oval shaped ring large enough ( about 4 inches across ) to attach extra things, that weigh hundreds of pounds. The basketball is just for scale to show a rock about the size of 3 basketballs could fit in the barrel. The purpose of the barrel is to be multi-functional. After you load it down as much as you can, then you can attach 2 or 3 medium-sized rocks to the oval shaped ring above and yank them all out in tandem. This also gives the kids and the centenarians a barrel to fill. And it can be placed in smaller digging areas where a digger might be cramped for space such as deeper in the cave. It can also be used to safely lower newborns and infants and toddlers into the lower part of the cave ( just kidding ). But maybe tools like hammer-drills, or sledge-hammers, or big chisels. A plastic 5 gallon bucket will fit inside, so we can use it that way for some reason like to lower beverages and ice to restock the ice-chest, or a first-aid kit. Also, if the winch is not available, material could be hauled out of the cave with this 9 gallon drum using manual methods, as in some kind of emergency situation. I can't wait to throw a big rock in it. David Locklear
